The reactionaries who have taken control of the Republican Party have shown they are incapable of governing in a modern society, but it is undeniable they have one skill–conning people into voting for them contrary to their self interest. The most commonly discussed manifestation of this is getting middle class voters to vote for Republicans, contrary to their financial interests, because of religious matters which have no place in public policy. It is less commonly noted that even many affluent voters are voting Republican contrary to their self interest. While the stock market and economy have done better under Democrats than Republicans, for reasons which should be obvious with any consideration of actual economics as opposed to Republican Voodoo Economics, many affluent voters vote for Republicans, mistakenly believing this to be in their self interest.

There are, of course, many exceptions. As was seen in the 2008 primaries, Obama does have a strong base of support from affluent, better educated voters. Bloomberg shows that internationally investors are more astute than American investors. While polls show American investors support Republicans, internationally investors support Obama:

Global investors increasingly prefer President Barack Obama to Republican challenger Mitt Romney and most say they believe the incumbent will remain in the White House for another four years.

Asked who would be the better leader for the global economy, 49 percent favor Obama against 38 percent for Romney, according to a quarterly Bloomberg Global Poll. In January, the two candidates tied on the question.

By the same margin, they say Obama has a better vision for the U.S. economy, according to the survey of 1,253 Bloomberg customers, who are investors, analysts or traders.

Obama “managed the U.S. economy pretty well, solving a lot of imbalances created by the previous administration,” says poll respondent Mario Di Marcantonio, 35, a senior portfolio manager at Eurizon Capital in Milan.

“I believe the second Obama term will be better than having a U-turn with Romney,” he says. “More stability will mean more visibility and more investment in the future.”

The American presidential election is dividing foreign investors and those based in the U.S., where Romney is favored across the board. U.S. investors choose the Republican candidate as best for the global economy by more than 2-to-1. Respondents outside the U.S. prefer Democrat Obama by almost 3-to-1 in the poll, conducted May 8.

Why such a huge difference between the views of global versus American investor? My bet is that this is largely based upon where they get their “news.” American investors are probably influenced by the Republican-dominated media which pushes false narratives such as that Republicans are more fiscally responsible and Democrats spend more, along with false claims blaming the deficit on Democrats. Of course a tiny increase in the top marginal tax rate goes a long way towards losing the support of the wealthy in this country. Even affluent voters making around $300,000, who would see a modest tax increase of a few hundred dollars a year under Obama’s tax plans, are easily scared into voting against him and believing Republican falsehoods.

“President Obama came out with approval of same-sex marriage. He said that over the years, he has been going through an evolution on the issue. That makes opponents on the far right doubly angry. They don’t believe in gay marriage OR evolution.” –Jimmy Kimmel